Any serious performance driver will look at a brake pads in a different way than your average joe before purchasing. 

There are a few details to examine before deciding on a brand.   Of these, the main thing that qualifies a pad suitable for its particular application is its friction coefficient.  Another important number to look at is recommended operational temperature range, and such information is available from all pad manufacturers, so don’t pass it up.

* Source: aa1car.com

Most brake pads are actually very well tested in controlled environments, and are done so to guarantee a certainly level of performance at peak use. 

Pads are also often very heavily abused during these tests to determine their limits, and verify their levels of friction and wear.  Pads are also tested to prove...